Fire-cracker.



PATENTED AUG. 13, 1907 NPDEL GRANDE.

FIRE GBAOKER.

APPLICATION FILED JAN.3.190'I.

INVNTOR WITNESSES:

A TTORNE 1 5 ms uumzls PETERS co. wnsnmcwu, r c

nnrrn STATES NICHOLAS DEL GRANDE, OF PETERSBURG, VIRGINIA.

FIRE-ORACKER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 13, 1907.

Application filed January 3,1907. Serial No. 850,574.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, NICHOLAS DEL GRANDE, a citizen of the United States,residing at Petersburg, in the county of Dinwiddie and State ofVirginia, have invented a new and useful Fire-Cracker, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to fire crackers and its object is to provide adevice of this character having a fuse formed with a head which isadapted to be ignited when drawn over a suitable striker such asordinary sand paper or a surface of special composition.

A still further object is to provide means for protecting the fuse intransit and to form fire crackers which can nest closely together whilesaid protecting devices are in position.

With the above and other objects in view the invention consists of afire cracker having a fuse extending from one end and provided with ahead adapted to be ignited whendrawn over a suitable striker. A conicalcap is adapted to be seated within one end of the fire cracker andextend over and protect the fuse and the other end of the fire crackeris recessed so as to receive one of these guards and thereby permit thefire crackers to be nested close together.

The invention also consists of certain other novel features ofconstruction and combinations of parts which will be hereinafter morefully described and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings is shown the preferred form of theinvention.

In said drawings: Figure 1 is a view partly in elevation and partly insection of a fire cracker constructed in accordance with this invention,the manner of nesting a cap within the cracker being shown by dottedlines; and Fig. 2 is a detail view of the cap.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference, 1 is the body of afire cracker formed in any desired manner and having a conical recess 2in one end while its other end is recessed as at 3. A fuse 4 is disposedwithin the recess 3 and extends beyond the end of the body and has'ahead 5 thereon formed of ingredients which when drawn over a strikerwill ignite. The fuse 4 is formed in any suitable manner and issufficiently stiff to remain rigid while the head is being struck. Thehead 4 may be made of any desired ingredients and can be formed toproduce flashes of different colors and can also be formed ofingredients which will ignite when drawn over sand paper or any otherrough surface which is not chemically prepared or can be so constitutedas to only ignite when rubbed upon a striker made up of certainingredients adapted to combine with the head to cause ignition.

If it is desired to produce a white fiash the head can be made 'asfollows: chlorate of potash 12 ounces, needled black antimony 6 ounces,sugar of milk 2 ounces, gum arabic 4 ounces. The head can be caused toproduce a red flash by forming it of the following ingredients: chlorateof potash 12 ounces, red oxid of mercury 6 ounces, sugar of milk 2ounces, gum arabic 4 ounces.

The heads if formed of the above mentioned ingredients can be ignitedstruck upon any rough surface such as ordinary sand paper but it is tobe understood that if preferred the heads can be made of compounds whichwill only ignite when drawn over certain chemically treated surfaces.

In order that the heads and fuses may be protected in transit a conicalcap 6 is employed which is adapted to fit snugly within the recess 3 andextend over the head so as to completely close it. This cap ispreferably formed on its outer face with a striker 7 by means of whichthe head may be ignited after the cap has been removed. By providing thefire cracker with the conical recess 2 two or more of them can be placedend to end and the cap of one will nest within the recess 2 of the otherthereby greatly facilitating the packing of the fire crackers fortransportation.

Obviously the object of extending the rigid fuse beyond the end of thecracker is to facilitate striking the head upon a suitable object tocause ignition, but it is obvious that in transportation it will benecessary to protect this fuse not only from contact with obstacles butalso from distortion, and by providing a conical cap which fits at itsbase snugly within the recess in the end of the cracker with sufficientfirmness to hold it in place and at the same time is tapered, so that itwill snugly receive the head at that portion in which the head will belocated when the cap is in place, all tendency to vibrate and thus comein contact either with the cap itself or with any other object isprevented. Moreover, by arranging the cap so that it fits within thecavity in the end of the cracker, instead of fitting over the end of thecracker, any tendency to force the cap down and thus into too rigid orfirm contact with the head of the fuse is prevented. The bottom of therecess in the end of the cracker serves as a positive stop to preventinward movementof the cap beyond the desired point, and thus stillfurther protects the head of the fuse. Again,

I when the crackers are boxed or packed end to end, the

reduced part of the cap covering the fuse at one end of any one crackercan fit within the cavity 2 in the opposite end of the adjacent cracker,so that the ends of the crackers themselves will come into contact. Thisprovides, therefore, for the conically recessed end of one crackerconstituting a still further guard and protection for the fuse end oftheadjacent cracker, and at the same time the projection of the fuse doesnot cause the crackers when packed to take up any more space than theywould if the fuse were not thus extended, or were flexible to lie in thecavity, except so far as the terminal crackers are concerned, or thosewhich are arranged with their fuse ends adjacent to one end wall of thebox or other receptacle in which they are arranged, and even thisadditional space in packing can be avoided by reversing the end crackersso as to cause the fuses of the end row to project into the cavities 3of the adjacent row, and vice versa. The slight disalinement of thecrackers due to this arrangement is not objectionable. It will be notedthat the recess 3 is of greater depth than the projection of the fusebeyond the extremity of the cracker.

It will be noted, moreover, that the striker 7 is arranged on theexterior surface of the cap or guard near the base, so that when the capis arranged in the cylindrical recess 3 in the fuse end of the cracker,that portion of the wall of the cap which is provided with the strikeris out of contact with the wall of the recess, but is within the recess,so that its striking surface is protected and preserved until it isdesired for use.

The preferred form of the invention has been set forth in the foregoingdescription but I do not limit myself thereto as I am aware thatmodifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit orsacrificing the advantages thereof, and I therefore reserve the right tomake such changes as fairly fall within the scope of the claims.

What is claimed is:

3. A fire cracker having at its fuse end a recess, and a rigid fusearranged in and projecting beyond the recess, and a conical cap fittingwithin the recess with its base in contact with the bottom of therecess.

4. A fire cracker having at its fuse end a recess, a fuse arranged inthe recess and having a terminal striking head, and a conical cap fittedat its base within the recess, and in contact with the bottom thereofand tapered t snugly fit the head of the fuse.

5. A fire cracker provided at its fuse end with a recess in which thefuse is arranged and at its opposite end with an unobstructed recess,and a cap fitting at one end within the recess at the fuse end of thecracker, and tapered at its other end to fit within the unobstructedrecess at the opposite end of an adjacent cracker.

. 6. A fire cracker provided at its fuse end with a cylindrical recessin which the fuse is arranged and at it opposite end with an inwardlytapered recess, and a conical cap fitted at its base in said cylindricalrecess and adapted at its point to project into the tapered recess atthe relatively opposite end of an adjacent cracker.

7. firecracker provided at its fuse end with a cylindrical recess, afuse arranged in the recess and having a striking head. and a conicalcap fitted at its base in said recess and inclosing the fuse, said capbeing provided on its exterior surface near the fuse with a frictionsurface for igniting the head.

S. A fire cracker having recessed ends, a fuse Within and extending fromone of the recesses. and a fuse guard detachably mounted within one ofthe recesses and substantially equal in extent to the other recess.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto afiixedmy signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

NICHOLAS DEL GRANDEv Witnesses:

E. HUME TALBERT, C. E. Dorms.

